Twist of Coil in Analog Blog

November 11, 2014 Miki Dare Leave a comment

Twist of Coil in Analog

I had to put in Analog blog – it rhymed. I’m rhyming because I’m excited like green eggs and ham, oh yes I am! My story ‘Twist of Coil’ is in the December 2014 issue of Analog Science Fiction and Fact. My author’s copies came in the mail, and I ripped open the package like it was the best Christmas gift ever (because it is!).

CXXXIV is 134

There on page 72, in Volume CXXXIV No. 12, is my story. It’s so amazing to see my name and work featured in such an esteemed magazine. I couldn’t be more honored. My story is in the hallowed pages of the great granddaddy of science fiction magazines. Woohoo!

A Little Analog History Goes a Long Way

Analog started out back in 1930 and has had a few name changes along the way such as Astounding (which it still is J). On Asimov’s Science Fiction webpage, Analog is listed as “the longest-running (almost)-continuously published science fiction magazine in the world.”

Sci-Fi Big Times

Big names in science fiction like Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, Poul Anderson and Spider Robinson have had their stories in Analog. This magazine was also the first to print classics like Frank Herbert’s Dune and Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey. To be associated with such a well-established science-fiction publication is such an amazing privilege. This December issue is definitely Christmas come early for me.

Writing Tips

The Spooky Truth of Being a Writer Mom

November 2, 2014 Miki Dare Leave a comment

The Spooky Truth of Being a Writing Mom

I know Halloween is over, but it’s still on my brain as I keep scarfing down chocolates and candies. Here are my thoughts about what it means to be a writer – ugly guts and all.

Evil Mastermind Commitment to Evil

For a long time I treated my writing more as a hobby, so it kept getting shunted to last priority. I had all these great ideas, but they weren’t on paper. An evil mastermind needs to do more than just hatch devious plans; she needs to make them happen. I had to commit to getting my diabolic plots typed up for others to read. So I could unleash them on the world! Bwhaha!

Mad Scientist Work Schedule

I had to cram writing into every tiny crevice of time I could find. I’d look at my day planner and see I had a one-hour window. I’d set the clock and spew out whatever I could. It wasn’t pretty – but at least it was out there. Like a good mad scientist, I could cut and hack parts I didn’t like. I could come up with new shady characters and painful plot twists for my shoddy first draft creations. I could take that really ugly baby and make it into something people would want to pick up and love. Or at least it had a face only a mother could love.

Vampire Hours

With work and kids, I often find the day a hard time to accomplish much. For example, I see all the things that need to get done around the house. Some days of procrastination have the byproduct of a very clean house. I love kids, but they tend to want things from me often…all day long. (I find getting interrupted throws my train of thought that often hadn’t left the station any way – but that’s getting off track now. :))

So I’ve adopted vampire hours to work on writing, depending on my workload the next day. The window of time somewhere between 10-2 is the time I have as my own. The sweet creatures that would scream my name are sleeping. And in the dark the mess doesn’t look so bad. I’d find myself a dark corner where it’s quiet and let the writing bug sink its fangs into me.

Zombie Mom

There, of course, is a price to pay. If I stay up too late and too often I become Zom Mom. That’s right, I risk becoming the dreaded Zombie mom. That means walking into doors by accident and feeling foggy-headed. Need more brains! Need more brains! So I have to balance out getting sleep, even if that means sneaking in an afternoon nap.

I would try to use sleep-deprivation as a learning opportunity. I would tell my kids how important sleep is and use myself as an example. See how cranky and clumsy I am? Why do you think that is? That’s right, I didn’t get enough sleep. It’s early to bed for everyone.

Haunted House

The other byproduct of spending every free moment writing, is that I would do little work around the house. Yes, I’ve allowed actual cobwebs to grow and multiply in my house. I told myself that would help provide ambiance while I wrote late at night. Mountains of laundry grew! Dirty dishes piled up! The horror! My housework has gotten out of hand.

So I can let that go for awhile, but eventually I need to do a major exorcism and clean the house up.

Ghost Writer

The other thing I find when I get on a serious writing jag is that I become less social. My brain is so busy scheming disasters and dealing with dubious characters that I’m not quite in the real world any more. It’s like a ghost of me is walking around and doing all the social things I’m supposed to. I’m so busy in my story world that I keep finding my mind floating away to it.

So, in order for me to write, I do have to be monstrously dedicated. It means I have a mad scientist schedule to follow and it often means writing late at night. This can lead to being zombie-like in my day-to-day interactions and a house of horrors as far as laundry and dishes are concerned. When I’m all into my writing, sometimes it means I have trouble switching gears back into the world of the living. This is the scary truth o writing in the real world.

I do my best to stay balanced, but a little unbalance goes a long way. Need more brains! Need more brains!

Halloween

Punny Halloween Costumes from Head to Feet

October 26, 2014 Miki Dare Leave a comment

Covered from Head to Foot with Punny Halloween Costumes

Okay, I have more punny costume ideas percolating in my head for Halloween. Here are some ideas that cover you from head to feet for October 31st! They are quick, easy and punny. 🙂 Did I say I love puns?! I know, I’m so corny…which brings me to my first costume idea.

A Really Corny Costume

You can go about this a few ways. You can make yourself a bandolier (aka bandoleer) of dried corn husks with wire or string. And/Or you can buy a bunch of cans of corn and take off the labels and randomly tape or glue them to a dress, shirt and/or pants. Voila! You have yourself a really corny costume.

Have Bed Head on Halloween

Get a bed from a Barbie set or a some other small doll toy set. Then hot glue-gun it to a headband or to a strip of sturdy cloth that you can tie over or around your head. Now you have instant bed head.

Go Trick-or-Treating with Your Head in the Clouds

Get some white paper and draw clouds. Next cut them out and then tape them to some thread or string. Then tape or tie them on to a headband or hair clips. Have them go all around your head if you can. Now you’ve got your head in the clouds. You can glue or tape cotton balls to the clouds for added effect. Wear all white to coordinate with the clouds. And you can also shroud a pair of earrings in cotton balls for added affect.

Party with Knuckle Sandwiches

Make peanut butter and jam sandwiches (or whatever ones you might like to eat later) and put them in a Ziploc sandwich bag. Now tape them on to your knuckles with athletic tape. You are ready to party with two knuckle sandwiches ready to go.

Two Left Feet Costume

This is good for a Halloween dance party. Go as someone with two left feet. You can go to a secondhand store and buy two sets of identical shoes. I would recommend buying them on the big side, so your right foot that’s going to go into the left shoe has some room and doesn’t feel squished. When you ask someone to dance or they ask you, you can warn them ahead of time that you have two left feet.

All Tied Up for Halloween

Wear a dress shirt then put on as many ties around your neck as you can. Look for some colorful and tacky ones from thrift shops. Have them go all around your neck from back to front. Then you can tell people you are “all tied up” for Halloween.

These are all great quick and easy Halloween costumes to make on the fly. You can find the materials you need easily at home or at a thrift shop. Then you can put them together in a flash at home and head off to your night of Halloween fun with a punny costume.

Halloween

Punny Homemade Halloween Costumes

October 13, 2014 Miki Dare Leave a comment

Punny Homemade Halloween Costumes

Halloween Outfits Based on Popular Sayings

Looking for an easy and humorous DIY costume for Halloween? Here are some quick homemade outfits that are easy and fun for anyone.

I love puns and I love Halloween. So, here are some simple costume ideas that are easy to do and that are based on idioms (aka well-known sayings). You can go with one idea or combine them if you want to go all out. They can also work as a theme for a couple or a bigger group going out for Halloween together.

Having a Green Thumb for Halloween

Paint a thumb green. It can be as simple as that. When people ask about your costume, explain that you have a “green thumb.” This costume can be dressed up easily by getting fake leaves and flowers. You can put them in a garland in your hair. You can also get green duct tape and tape the faux plants on to a green shirt and pants. If you are really handy you could sew the fake flowers and leaves on. Thumbs up for a green thumb.

Butterflies in My Stomach Costume

Get pipe cleaners, paper and paint and make paper butterflies. If there are wooden clothes pins around the house, they can be used as the body of the butterfly with paper as the wings and the pipe cleaner as the antennae. The clothes pins are easy to stick on to you clothes. If you don’t have clothes pins, you can use duct tape the same color as your shirt to tape the butterflies on to the stomach area of your top. Another option is to put the butterflies on a dress. You can add some ‘escaping’ butterflies in your hair or clip one to a bracelet or hair elastic and wear it on your wrist.

Frog in My Throat Halloween Costume

Buy a plastic frog and glue-gun it or duct tape it to a ribbon, scarf or piece of cloth that can be tied around the neck. So the saying is “there is a frog in my throat” – so preposition-wise this is a frog technically on your throat, but you speak with a croaky voice and say there is still one in your throat. This is just the one that escaped.

Wearing Your Heart on Your Sleeve for Halloween

Cut out a heart from red felt or cloth and then duct tape, sew or glue gun it to the sleeve of a shirt. If you are short with supplies and time, you can always color a heart out of paper or use red construction paper to make your heart. You could even just pin it on. You could also make a heart for each sleeve. Worse comes to worse, you could always get a red felt and draw the heart right on to a shirt you don’t mind having a heart permanently on the sleeve.

On Halloween be a Facebook Friend

Write the word book across your face in black eyeliner or face paint. Then when people ask you what you are, you can answer, “I’m Facebook. Would you like to be my friend.” Hopefully you make some real friends.

These are simple, cheap and easy Halloween costumes that you can do quickly if you are short of time for a costume for October 31^st. The materials are easy to make or find. And you can spend as much and as little time as you want on making one of these costumes for your next Halloween party. Or perhaps it will inspire your own ‘sense of pun” and you come up with your own.

Media

Postmedia Takeover Could Lead to Post-Mortem on Quality Journalism

October 7, 2014 Miki Dare Leave a comment

Scary News

Here’s something scary just in time for Halloween. Having one company holding the majority of our media like an overflowing bag of candy they can’t wait to eat up. The quality of journalism is already dying. Now I fear the zombie news apocalypse is upon us! I’m speaking tongue-in-rotting-cheek, but the feeling of horror is real.

Postmedia Takeover Could Lead to Post-Mortem on Quality Journalism

Quebecor is ready to hand over 175 English-language newspapers to Postmedia for $316 million. As far as big business is concerned, this can be seen as a win-win for both companies. The losers in all this will be some 35 million Canadians. We will be losing out on quality and diversity in our news as a country. No matter what the company promises, good business practices will naturally (or unnaturally depending how you look at it) lead to the demise of quality journalism.

The Sun Would Shine Across the Country for Postmedia

Some would say look on the bright side, the sun would shine for Postmedia in a national frenzy. With this sale, Postmedia would own the Vancouver Sun, the Edmonton Sun, the Calgary Sun, the Winnipeg Sun, the Ottawa Sun and the Toronto Sun. It would also take hold of the 24 Hours dailies in Vancouver and Toronto. But that’s not all, Postmedia would be the owner of the websites for all these newspapers.

Postmedia to Control Nearly All the English-language Canadian Papers

Here’s an excerpt from CBC reporter Pete Evans’ online story on October 6^th, 2014, “If it goes through as announced, the deal would mean Postmedia, which was built out of the ashes of the former CanWest media empire, would control just about every major English-language newspaper in Canada that isn’t based in Toronto (the publishing home of the Toronto Star and The Globe and Mail).”

Good Business Model Spells the Ruin of Quality News

This is scary because it would be so easy for Postmedia to just have the same news stories in all these newspapers all coming from a central hub. Throw in a few local stories and then you’re done. You wouldn’t need nearly as much staff – think of the cutbacks, think of the savings! Taking these steps would seem perfectly rational and be extremely profitable from a business point of view.

Dreams of a News Utopia

Idealist that I am, I would like news to be truly about keeping people informed about what is happening in the world. I like that olden day image of detective-like journalists snooping about and being critical to uncover the truth of serious and meaningful issues. Things like investigative journalism are falling to the wayside for much cheaper choices like rewriting email news releases sent out by the government.

To have good quality news costs a lot of time and money and this goes against a business model which is to spend as little as possible on the product and sell it for the same price or higher. Sigh. Zombie News Apocalypse. The road to hell is paved with good business intentions.

We Want Many Voices, Not Just One

Normally we think of third world countries when we think of the lion’s share of the media being held in the hands of one controlling interest. If this deal goes through, we will be getting all our news filtered through the same sieve, the words written from the same hand, spoken from the same mouth all across Canada. The same advertisements will be pumped cross country online and in the papers. If all the papers are saying the same thing, how can it not be true? What a great way to control how people see and think about the world then having only one source for news.

Check Out Alternative News and Blogs

If you haven’t already, you may want to start investing your time into checking out smaller independent newspapers and blogs. Look for variety and indepth research in new stories. Root out media that makes sure different perspectives are represented in news coverage. Look micro-locally and look globally to find news sources that can offer you quality information.

Scary news times are already upon us. It’s never too late to start preparing for the Zombie News Apocalypse.

Parenting Ideas

How to Get Toddlers to Clean Up

September 29, 2014 Miki Dare Leave a comment

Tips to Help Kids Tidy Their Toys

Tired of picking up toys scattered around the house by little ones? Toddlers can learn to clean up after themselves. The key is to make them feel “all grown up” and have fun with helping around the house.

It’s never too early to help kids learn about cleaning up. Here are some ideas to help teach kids how to put away their toys and get involved in other simple chores.

Start Kids Early With Cleaning Up

You often hear parents complain about how their kids never pick up after themselves. The trick? Train them early, so they don’t know any different. As soon as they can toddle they can be introduced to cleaning up. Now, I’m not saying they will be vacuuming the floors and doing the dishes (that would be some YouTube video), but they can do their small share towards the never-ending goal of household cleanliness.

Toddlers Like to Do What Adults Do

They are watching you.

Children watch their parents and want to do what you are doing. Mom and dad are holding the new baby, why you will see a toddler holding a baby doll in the same fashion. Kids clomp around in their parents’ shoes, love to talk on cellphones, lipstick their faces (and the walls) and fill the toilet with a mountain of toilet paper – all in an attempt to do what they see their parents doing, but in their own creative fashion. We want to channel this enthusiasm.

Start Small

Toddlerhood is a wonderful time to encourage kids to help with cleaning. Whenever a parent is cleaning up or doing household chores, see if there is a way to include the toddler. For example, when you are putting groceries away, let the child put away light boxes and small cans. Show them how to stack them. When you set the table, let them carry napkins or cutlery. Show them where they would go at the table. Show and explain everything step-by-small-step for kids.

Repeat, Repeat, Repeat

We learn by repetition. Kids learn by repetition. A whole lot of it.

Parents need to be patient and prepared to provide numerous demonstrations and help them in the process. You need to be ready for dropped cans and spilled water. The idea is not to expect toddlers to do chores up to adult standards. The idea is to make them feel good and part of the household by doing chores with the family. This part is important because that’s what will make them want to keep doing it.

Praise Kids for Helping Out

A key aspect of getting young kids to help around the house with cleaning and chores, is to acknowledge their effort. While the child is helping put away the groceries, chat with them about the food being put away. Give them as much attention as you can and praise them for helping.

For example, if a parent is husking corn or peeling oranges, let the child try to do it. If it’s getting too hard, let them help out another way like putting the peels in the compost container. Talk about how good the food will taste when everyone eats together. When you are having lunch, make sure to say how the child helped out and to thank them in front of the family. Who doesn’t like to hear good things about themselves?

Make Chores as Exciting as Tom Sawyer Made Painting

When you are doing your chores, remember your kids are watching. You don’t want to be screaming about how you hate laundry (even if this is true, we’ll keep that as our inside voice). You want to have a positive attitude about the daily duties of the household. You want to show that it’s an enjoyable task and an opportunity for socializing. Be inspired by Tom Sawyer painting for his Aunt Polly. You could have a whole neighborhood of toddlers wanting to help you out if you make cleaning up seem like the very best thing ever!

Make Clean Up Fun for Young Kids

When doing chores, make it fun and games for kids where you can. For example, if it is time to put laundry in the hamper, make it a throwing game. See how many pieces of dirty laundry can get thrown into the laundry basket or hamper. Parents should join in themselves so it’s a family event. Laugh, clap and cheer when anyone gets clothes in the basket.

Not only does this work on hand-eye coordination for young ones, but making cleaning up a game can help with clean up of all sorts of things around the house from building blocks to shoes.

Have an Organized Routine for Clean Up

Having a set routine where clean up is part of ending an activity is a great habit to get kids into. When a play activity is ending, let kids know ahead of time that it will soon be time to put the toys away. Give them a five-minute warning and then two-minute notice. Then when it is time for clean up, let the kids know and help them with the process. Make clean up part of the routine when doing any play or art activity.

Use a Clean Up Song to Cue Kids to Start Cleaning

It’s also a good idea when it is time to clean up to have a clean-up rhyme or song. A popular song to sing is the following:

Clean up, Clean up

Everybody everywhere

Clean up, Clean up

Time for us to do our share

Keep repeating the song until everything is all cleaned up. As kids become familiar with the song, they will hum or sing along. They will know what to do when you start singing the song. Or check out this video, they will start cleaning up on their own when they sing the song.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N69NRFduFF0

Toddlers Can Learn to Clean

Toddlers are at stage of development where they are open to the idea of cleaning up – particularly if you make it enjoyable. Get them to help you with simple chores and make it a fun and social process. Make cleaning into a game and praise them for their participation. Have an organized routine so they know clean up is part of daily life. Life is messy, so enjoy cleaning it up together – one day at a time.

Parenting Ideas

Nobody’s Perfect Program for Parents

September 20, 2014 Miki Dare Leave a comment

Nobody’s Perfect Parenting Program

Looking to tune up your parenting skills or get some support on a parenting issue? If you are a parent of young kids in BC, you might want to check out a Nobody’s Perfect parenting program. Nobody’s Perfect is a free, helpful and fun way to improve your parenting skills, meet other parents and have a little break from the kids.

Free Parenting Program

This free program is for parents who have kids ages zero to five-years-old and it’s offered in communities throughout British Columbia. Knowing how hard it can be to have a discussion surrounded by a flock of children, free babysitting is offered. There are also free drinks and snacks offered for both the parents and the kids. As well, if you need help with getting to the program, you can talk with organizers about transportation options as well.

Share and Discuss Parenting Issues

Being a parent can be stressful sometimes, your life can revolve around the kids and it can be hard to get some time to yourself to think about this important job that you do. The nice thing about Nobody’s Perfect is that you have space to relax, think and speak about how life with the kids is going for you. You also get to meet other parents who have kids the same age and can relate to your trials and triumphs.

If you have any questions or burning issues you are dealing with, this is a great time to talk about it and get feedback and ideas. Let’s say you are having toilet training issues with your three-year-old, you can ask the other parents and facilitators about their experience and any advice they have. On the flip side, if you are doing something well or have come up with a creative way to get kids to eat vegetables, you can share this with other parents.

Nobody’s Perfect Facilitators

Two people facilitate the meetings, meaning they provide structure and activities for discussion, but there is a lot of room for parents to interact and talk about immediate issues they are facing. The facilitators are usually parents themselves, so they have firsthand experience and empathy for parents who are taking part in the program. They also offer information on the developmental stages for kids and the kind of behavior and health issues that can come up at each stage.

Time Commitment for Parenting Program

Nobody’s Perfect runs from six to eight weeks and groups usually meet once a week for about two-and-a-half hours. There can sometimes be waitlists for the program, depending on the area where you live, so you may want to phone ahead if you are interested. For this reason, before you sign up, a commitment to coming to most of the sessions is often expected.

Where to Find Nobody’s Perfect

Talk to or visit with staff at your local community centre or neighborhood family place to find out if they offer this program or if they know where it is being offered. Another option is to go online to the BC Council for Families and go to the Program Locator section. You can type in “Nobody’s Perfect” in the Program slot and then add in your city or town.

Nobody’s Perfect parenting program is a free program offered in towns and cities across BC. It’s geared for parents with kids from the age of zero to five and it’s a great way to improve your parenting skills, share ideas with other parents and have coffee and cake without the kids.

Parenting Ideas

Pippi Longstocking Parenting

September 6, 2014 Miki Dare Leave a comment

Pippi Longstocking Parenting

I owe Pippi Longstocking for more than my love of long striped socks and over-sized boots. What I remember best about this red-headed wonder child — more than her eccentric fashion, super strength and gold stockpile – was her epic fibbing. Now as a parent, Astrid Lindgren’s famous character inspires me to tell tall tales to my kids in everyday life. I’m a constant liar!

How to Be a Good Parent?

Especially when my children were young and tottering about, I had days where I wondered if I had what it took to be a parent. There was a lot of conflict, crying and screaming of “NO! NO! NO!” – and that was from all of us. I searched constantly online, joined parenting groups and read books about raising kids; I was so very serious about being a good mom and doing the right thing. But there were so many resources, so many different schools of thought and so many different pieces of advice being offered out. Which way was the right way? And the bigger question, would I be able to remember the advice during stressful times?

Be the Bigger Person, Remember What it’s Like to Be the Smaller Person

Then, during a parenting class (Nobody’s Perfect, I totally recommend it), we did an exercise where I had to find a symbol to help me stay positive in difficult moments. I had to find a way to overcome my uptightness and anger. I needed to be the bigger person, and sometimes that means remembering what it’s like to be a smaller person. Pippi cart-wheeled into my head and whispered, ”You don’t have to be so by-the-book. Skip school and make your own rules! Find the joy in the everyday and get creative when things aren’t going your way.” So I did.

Creative Storytelling in Everyday Life

Instead of trying to battle a toothbrush into my toddler’s mouth, I told him about sugar bugs. I told him these little critters carry shovels and like to dig holes and tunnels in teeth. Magically, his mouth opened wide.

When he was scared to sleep at night, instead of saying “There are no monsters in your room, go to sleep,” I told him about the monster police. They patrol 24/7, picking up monsters who should be sleeping. They take them home to their monster parents where they are tucked into their monster beds. The monster police look under beds and under closets until every monster is put to bed. My son snuggled into bed feeling safer.

Finding Balance in Parenting with Pippi

I have found on-the-spot creative lying lightens tense moments, stops tears and brings us closer together. Now it’s not all springy red pigtails and all the candy we can eat at the candy shop, but it’s finding the balance and remembering the spunky verbal spontaneity of my childhood heroine. She made fibbing fantastically fun and embodies the magical wishful-thinking I had as a child, and hope to hold on to as a grown up. When times are tough, I bring on the Pippi Power and hopefully bring a little Pippi peppy magic into the lives of everyone in my family.

Check back for future posts where I’ll offer up some of my creative storytelling ideas for kids.

Writing Tips

How to Get Over Writer’s Block

August 26, 2014 Miki Dare Leave a comment

HOW TO GET OVER WRITER’S BLOCK

Getting Around Writer’s Block

I know dog there’s debate about whether writer’ block really exists. But, whether it does or not, there will always be days when you feel like all your creative juices have gone. Somehow they leaked out your ears, formed a puddle on the floor and then were promptly slurped up by the dog. The dog ate my creativity! We can fix that. The following are tips to help get around writer’s block (get it – get a “round” writer’s block :)) and restore your creativity.

Just Write (About Anything)

Oh yeah. People say that all the time. Just write. Pbbbbt. I stick my tongue out at this advice. But, then I go back to my computer and remember that’s indeed a good idea. I had a great English teacher who had us do “free” journaling. She gave us10-15 minutes to write about anything. And I mean anything. Some days I just wrote “blah blah” for the whole page. Some days I wrote about very personal problems. But she didn’t mark us on content. In fact she never read any of it. Our mark was solely for filling the page. It was all about the process, just being able to get into the rhythm of writing. So give yourself the freedom to write about anything. Blah, blah, blah.

Write a Journal

Or segue journal writing into very personal problems. If you do have a lot going on in your life, writing a journal might be a good way to kickstart your writing. It’s helpful because it allows you to transfer “worry thoughts” on to paper. Instead of having them run around in your mind, trap them in words in your journal and leave them there so you can focus on your writing. Also, just the process of writing in your journal warms you up for writing your book/story/play/poem/etc.

Ditch the Computer, Really Write

Sometimes it’s nice to change mediums. Maybe the computer is no longer being your friend. It’s just staring at you with that blank-page look on its face. Get old school. Go paper and pen. Try pencil and paper. Use ink and a calligraphy pen. Use a stone tablet and a chisel. Particularly if you’re writing anything historical, it could be fun to write how they did during that time period. (This does not mean I condone writing in blood if you’re a horror writer.)

Doodle and Draw Your Story

Even m crayons ore glorious, and taking you back to the glory days of your creativity, I dare you to go bust out a box of crayons. Doodle. Scribble. Remember what it’s like to be a kid again – when you knew you were going to grow up to be a professional race car driver and Olympic ballerina who also worked as a scientist who invented cars that run on fart power. Draw to have fun and to get your hand and brain working together again. Or you can ramp it up a notch and try drawing a scene, character or map from your story world.

Find Your Story Somewhere Else

To get to your magical story world, sometimes you need to actually physically move. If you’re writing in the kitchen and the sink full of dishes keeps calling you – Escape!!! Find a new place to write. Ideally go to a quiet space where you can concentrate and won’t be interrupted. For some people, it mean going outside their house to work. If going to a coffee shop is too expensive for you, the library is a great quiet alternative – without coffee.

Start in the Middle, Start at the End

Sometimes end sign we get caught up in being chronological about our work. I always tell kids when they have a test, not to stay stuck on a hard question. Put a star by it and come back to it. Go through and do everything you can, skip to the easy parts and then go back to the hard parts. If you have a great idea for the middle of the story, go for it. If you know what you want for the ending, go ahead and get writing that up. That’s what I did.

Uncategorized

Spitting Up Frogs Blog – My First Story Published!

Image August 15, 2014 Miki Dare 3 Comments

HAPPY SPITTING UP FROGS BLOG

MY FIRST SHORT STORY PUBLISHED
I am floppy-Muppet-hands-waving-in-the-air excited!
Inscription magazine picked up my urban fairytale Spitting Up Frogs. It’s a terrific online magazine that specializes in fantasy and science fiction for young adults. Check out the site and read Spitting Up Frogs. If you are a teacher and want free worksheets and lesson plan ideas for using Spitting Up Frogs for your short story unit, check out Teacher Worksheets & Resources.

WHERE DID I GET THE IDEA FOR SPITTING UP FROGS?
That’s a good question. I was inspired by a story I read when I was a young girl. It’s called The Fairies and was written by Charles Perrault (1628-1703). It’s about two sisters who meet a fairy in disguise. One sister is kind and polite. The fairy rewards her so that every time she opens her mouth precious jewels fall out. The other sister is mean and rude to the fairy. This sister is cursed with frogs and snakes coming out of her mouth every time she talks.

CHARLES PERRAULT’S MESSAGE
I like the message of Perrault’s fairy tale, both then and now. If you speak kindly, it’s as if diamonds and pearls fall from your mouth. If you speak disrespectfully to others, then it’s as if ugly, slimy things fall from your mouth. Choose your words wisely.

URBAN FAIRYTALE
I wrote Spitting Up Frogs thinking about what it would be like to be the cursed sister or the descendant of the cursed sister. What would life be like living with such a curse today? How could she turn something that’s seen as negative into something positive?

RACISM IN THE MODERN WORLD
Another tradition in fairytales, is the angry fairy godmother who curses a child because she wasn’t invited by the parents to a special family event. I used this in my story, and looked at the fairy’s ‘magic’ as her power and privilege through race. Fuyumi, the main character, is biracial and her start in life is disadvantaged because of racism in her extended family.

TOURETTE’S SYNDROME TO SELECTIVE MUTISM
I also wrote this story thinking about people who have difficulty speaking. I thought about kids who are new to a country and don’t know the local language. Children can have speech-related conditions like stuttering, Tourette’s syndrome, extreme anxiety and selective mutism. They face challenges constantly, and they are brave and persistent in their daily life.

CHILDREN AND CHALLENGES
Life can be tough, and my wish for kids is that they can have faith in themselves. Just because society has labeled something as negative, doesn’t mean it has to be. Yes, it’s unfair and some days will be really hard. Some kids do have extra challenges they have to face, but they have the strength to face them (even though there will be days they feel they don’t). My hope in writing this story is that kids can have a positive story to reflect on and feel inspired by the main character Fuyumi.

EMPATHY MAKES A BETTER WORLD
My other hope is that kids can see how they can make a difference by helping others. In this story, Harvinder shows genuine interest and kindness towards Fuyumi and her frogs. He walked towards her when everyone walked away. He is an everyday hero through his constant support of a friend. If instead of running from differences, we embraced them, what a lovelier world we could live in.